Both the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) recently released their respective 2018 examination priorities, providing a glimpse into their plans for the year to...more
3/2/2018
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Capital Raising ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Customer Due Diligence (CDD) ,
Digital Currency ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Financial Markets ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Investment Funds ,
OCIE ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
SEC Examination Priorities ,
Secondary Markets ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Token Sales ,
Virtual Currency
After our recent client alert summarizing recent U.S. regulatory developments in the crypto-world, the House of Representatives of the State of Wyoming passed HB 70, referred to as the “Utility Token Bill” and HB 19, known as...more
3/1/2018
/ Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Currency ,
EU ,
Financial Markets ,
France ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Switzerland ,
Token Sales ,
Unregistered Securities ,
Virtual Currency
On Feb. 6, Jay Clayton and Christopher Giancarlo, the chairmen of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), respectively, jointly testified before the Senate Banking...more
3/1/2018
/ Bitcoin ,
Blockchain ,
CFTC ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Currency ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
ETFs ,
Financial Markets ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Investment ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Risk Management ,
Token Sales ,
Trading Platforms ,
Virtual Currency
One week after filing a fraud suit against the organizer of the PlexCoin token sale, the SEC issued an enforcement order in connection with a token offering by Munchee and a public statement that shed some additional light on...more
2/8/2018
/ Blockchain ,
Digital Currency ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Markets ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations ,
Token Sales ,
Unregistered Securities ,
Virtual Currency
Global Regulators Increasingly Shifting Focus to Cryptocurrency -
After years of allowing cryptocurrency transactions to fly under the radar, financial market regulators are beginning to turn their attention to virtual...more
2/2/2018
/ Bitcoin ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Currency ,
EU ,
Financial Markets ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Investment Funds ,
New Legislation ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securitization ,
Tax Cuts and Jobs Act ,
Tax Reform ,
Token Sales ,
Virtual Currency
Until recently, cryptocurrencies had largely avoided the regulatory spotlight. While financial market regulators monitored the emerging sector, they largely maintained a hands-off approach as it remained on the periphery of...more
2/1/2018
/ Asia ,
Bitcoin ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Currency ,
EU ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Investment Funds ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Russia ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Token Sales ,
Virtual Currency
After lingering on the periphery of financial markets for the past several years, cryptocurrency has finally started to move into the mainstream. While the explosion in Bitcoin’s value dominated the news headlines,...more
1/2/2018
/ Bitcoin ,
Blockchain ,
CBOE ,
Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Currency ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Popular ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Virtual Currency
The effect of Bitcoin on securities markets and enhanced measures related to retail investors were the focus at the October meeting of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Investor Advisory Committee (Committee)....more
12/5/2017
/ Blockchain ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
Financial Markets ,
Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act) ,
Investment ,
Investment Funds ,
Popular ,
Regulation S-K ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Retail Investors ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
On Sept. 14, 2017, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) issued a risk alert outlining certain compliance issues identified by the regulator’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (“OCIE”) related to...more
On July 25, the SEC released an investigative report warning that “virtual” organizations’ offers and sales of digital assets may be subject to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of...more
By many measures, mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity in the investment management space for 2017 is on track to meet or exceed the brisk pace of activity seen in 2016. Whether the desire that drives them is securing...more
On August 7, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) released a Risk Alert summarizing the results of its second cybersecurity preparedness examination. The...more
On July 6, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) reached a settlement with respondent Paramount Group Real Estate Advisor LLC (Respondent) regarding certain alleged violations of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as...more
The Institutional Limited Partners Association (ILPA) recently released “Subscription Lines of Credit and Alignment of Interests,” a report designed to provide private equity fund limited partners (LPs) guidance regarding...more
Kramer Levin’s Alternative Investment Management practice recently hosted “Structuring Considerations for Direct Lending Funds,” a seminar designed to assist those fund managers who form investment vehicles to lend to small...more
The Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Division of Investment Management recently modified its “Frequently Asked Questions on Form ADV and IARD,” adding several new topics and updating one existing item....more
On May 3, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) released proposed amendments to certain rules under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (the Advisers Act) to reflect the impact of the Fixing America’s Surface...more
SEC Offers Guidance on ‘Fast-Growing Trend’ of Robo-Advisers -
As technology and robo-advisers become increasingly common options for asset managers and investors alike, the SEC is taking a closer look at some of the...more
OCIE Highlights Frequent Topics for Compliance Deficiencies for Investment Advisers -
On Feb. 7, 2017, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC’s) Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (“OCIE”) published...more
3/2/2017
/ Books & Records ,
Chief Compliance Officers ,
Covered Agreement ,
Custody Rule ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Protection ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Ethics ,
EU ,
Filing Requirements ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Form ADV ,
Insurance Industry ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
NYDFS ,
OCIE ,
Registered Investment Companies (RICs) ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Reinsurance ,
Risk Alert ,
Rule 204-2 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Strict Compliance
Private Fund Advisers, Robo-Advisers, ETFs Among SEC, FINRA Exam Priorities for 2017 -
As the new year begins, U.S. regulators highlighted the areas – some new and some familiar – which will be the focus of their...more
2/2/2017
/ Bail-In Provisions ,
Bank Recovery and Resolution Directive (BRRD) ,
Banks ,
Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Cybersecurity ,
Department of Financial Services ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
ETFs ,
EU ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Insurance Industry ,
Investment Adviser ,
NYDFS ,
Private Funds ,
SEC Examination Priorities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
As 2017 begins, financial markets and the regulators that oversee them are facing significant uncertainty. When President-elect Donald Trump assumes the Oval Office on Jan. 20, all indications suggest that it will mark a...more
1/5/2017
/ Accredited Investors ,
Administrative Appointments ,
Administrative Resignation ,
Banking Sector ,
Community Banks ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Deregulation ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Federal Reserve ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Financial Institutions ,
Global Economy ,
Interest Rates ,
Lending ,
Presidential Elections ,
Private Equity Funds ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Trump Administration ,
Unemployment ,
Volcker Rule